“The Great Leap”, the current production of InterAct Theatre Company, is a taut, fast-paced drama that combines the themes of basketball and politics.

The Philadelphia premiere, which continues through June 23, is focused on two teams, one American, one Chinese, and especially on the personal and political dramas of a talented Chinese American player and a Chinese coach who’s a loyal member of the Communist party.

Basketball gives “The Great Leap” its momentum and energy. One highlight is a scene near the end that’s an extended and suspenseful basketball game between the two teams.

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“When I first read the script, I thought, ‘This scene will really be fun!’” said Peter Whinnery of Lansdowne.

He isn’t in the cast of four, so he’s not onstage at all, but Whinnery's role behind the scenes is crucial to what the audience sees onstage.

As lighting designer, he’s in charge of all the ways lighting is used – for instance, to spotlight one character, or an object like the basketball net, or for mood changes or blackouts when scenes end.

Whinnery’s role began well before rehearsals when he sat down with director Seth Rozin to decide on all the lighting details. Just as Whinnery predicted, the scene with the basketball game was a highlight.

The actors don’t actually play a game onstage. Instead, the cast of four takes turns narrating and recreating the action.

“Each of them has his own spotlight,” said Winnery. “We also use a lot of color to help create the mood of the game. When the Chinese are winning, we use red. When it’s the Americans, we use blue. It’s all very theatrical.”

Besides the intricate lighting details for this scene, there are numerous other lighting cues in the two act play with its many brief scenes and quick pace, almost like the pace of a basketball game.

In all, Whinnery’s design has a total of 83 different lighting cues.

Once the cues were designed in advance, his role continued. He attended “tech week” when all the technical details are fine-tuned, including lighting. Then, too, he attended all rehearsals, watching the stage attentively.

“I’m there with the lighting console at my fingertips,” said Whinnery.

“It’s always bittersweet for me, because my job is finished,” he said. “And I’ve had such a good time — especially working with this cast and director — that I’m going to miss them.”

A special pleasure was working with director Seth Rozin. The two have enjoyed a longstanding collaboration.

It all began over 30 years ago when Rozin was a student at the University of Pennsylvania and Whinnery was the technical advisor for Penn’s student performing arts program.

“I could see that he was very talented, but I had no idea he’d go on to found a theater company- and he probably he didn’t either,” said Whinnery.

Rozin co-founded InterAct in 1988 and Whinnery soon became its designer-in-residence. By now he’s designed over 50 InterAct productions, sometimes also designing scenery.

Besides his long history with InterAct, the Lansdowne theater artist has also done lighting design for many area theater companies, including the Wilma Theater, 11th Hour, Painted Bride Art Center, Bryn Mawr College and the University of Pennsylvania, where he teaches theatrical design for the Theatre Arts Program and serves as technical adviser for Platt Student Performing Arts House.

Two weeks ago, after 38 years, he retired from his position at the University of Pennsylvania, but he is definitely not retiring from his role as a lighting designer for theater companies.

“I hope to continue my freelance design career,” said Whinnery.

He’s always enjoyed working behind the scenes, but not onstage.

“The last time I had an acting role was in 5th grade,” he said. “I quickly realized I wasn’t cut out to be on the stage.”

Nor did he envision a theater career when he started college. Attending Albion College in Michigan (he’s a native of the state), he majored in math.

“But when I had an opportunity for a free elective, I took a course in technical theater — stagecraft — and that’s when it all began.

After Albion, he earned a Master’s degree in technical theater and design- and he’s been focused on that specialty ever since.

“The Great Leap”, his 50th production with InterAct, has been one more rewarding experience with this theater.

“With so many of the InterAct plays, there are lots of lighting cues and different moods,” he said. “And I always find that to be especially interesting.”

What’s more, “The Great Leap” has been another chance to work with Rozin, who was once his student and is now his longtime theater colleague.

“We have one of the longest director-designer collaborations in town,” said Whinnery. “He’s a marvelous theater artist to work with. I always think of my designs as co-designs with Seth because we work so closely together.”